Ultimately, it was unprofitable art that Nico Hülkenberg delivered with his Aston Martin at the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah. Sebastian Vettel’s substitute missed the points in the second race of the year in twelfth place, but then celebrated his performance anyway.
“It went better than expected, maybe I’m not as rusty and old as I think. I felt and beat better than expected, I have to admit. I have to say: commentator Nico Hulkenberg really has to support driver Nico Hulkenberg Pat on the shoulder. I drove a great race, clean, didn’t make any mistakes,” laughs the German on “ServusTV”.
Hulkenberg managed to get the most out of the circumstances. “I drove to the limit of the car, and my personal anyway. I think I put everything in and didn’t leave anything behind,” he emphasizes on the “Sky” microphone.
And also in a physical sense. Hulkenberg, who has not driven a Formula 1 race for a year and a half, was literally thrown in at the deep end in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. “Of course it was exhausting. I lost a few grains on the track. But I fought my way through,” he explains.
Hülkenberg: The safety car was the killer for my race
But what else would have been in it for Hülkenberg and Aston Martin in this battle of attrition? After all, four vehicles with Nicholas Latifi, Daniel Ricciardo, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas were eliminated. Team-mate Lance Stroll and Alex Albon also had to park their car shortly before the end after a collision.
Especially the safety car phase caused by Latifi was inconvenient for Hulkenberg. “That was actually the killer for my race,” says the German. “That put me quite behind at the back.” Hülkenberg started the race as one of only three drivers with the hard tires and opted for the longest possible first stint.
That shot backfired through the early safety car period. Bernd Mayländer had to pull out at a time when the pit stop window had already opened for the drivers who started on medium tires.
TV expert again: Hülkenberg is happy “like Bolle”
Hulkenberg doesn’t really want to be happy about the victory in the team duel either. Without the collision between Stroll and Albon in the battle for P11, the German would only have finished 14th. “He had an accident shortly before the end and that’s why he was behind me. You have to be fair and realistic,” puts Hülkenberg into perspective.
“But even without that: At the end of my first stint I was on the same pace as him.” This is also why the conclusion of the second guest appearance in Formula 1 2022 is positive: “I think my performance was really impressive. I’m proud of it.”
From the Australian GP in Melbourne, regular Aston Martin driver and four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel is scheduled to take over the AMR22 again. The actually planned tasks as a TV expert at ServusTV are then waiting for Hülkenberg again. And his anticipation is great, Hülkenberg is looking forward to it “like Bolle”.
“Finally back at my comfortable command post with my colleagues, so everything is fine,” says the German. “We knew: It’s only temporary. For me it was a short vacation, a little trip back to the Formula 1 car. I’m completely fine with returning to my quasi-old life.”